Gas collector and vent



April l13, 1943. A. L. GREEN 2,316,686

GAS COLLECTOR AND VENT Filed April 1, 1941 2 sheets-sheet 1 April 13, 1943. IA. L GREEN GAS coLLEcToRAND VENT Filed April l, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sme/who@ L Gra/e0,

Patented Apr. 13, 1943 UNITED STATES PAT-ENT .OFFICE GAS COLLECTOR AND VEN'I*` Archie L. Green, Sioux Falls, IS. Dak.

Application April 1, 1941, Serial No. 386,381

2 Claims.

Illuminating or fuel gas, commonly piped through city streets and into residences and buildings, sometimes escapes from the underground pipes through defective connections, etc. This escapin-g gas follows along the outside of the underground pipes in the looser dirt filled into the ditch in which the pipes have been laid, ultimately seeping into the residence or building which the gas line services, wh-ere it, not infrequently, is ignited and explodes.

The object of the present invention is to pro vide a device which will extend entirely across the ditch in which the gas pipe is laid, just outside the residence or building which the gas line services, said device being adapted to collect the gas which has escaped before it reaches the inside of the residence or building, an-d to vent the collected gas to the atmosphere outside the residence or building. In this way, the gas which has escaped will be prevented from seeping into the residence or building and ignition and exploding of the gas within the building will be prevented. A suitable manner may be applied to the discharge end of the vent pipe of the gas collector, Whenever desired, to determine whether or not any gas is being collected and vented to the atmosphere by the device.

An object of the present invention is to provide a gas collector and vent of the above kind which is simple in construction, convenient to install and eii'icient in use.

The exact nature of the present invention will be more clearly apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View through a lled ditch in which a gas supply pipe has been laid and with which is associated a gas collector and vent constructed in accordance with the present invention, the gas supply pipe and the gas collector and vent device being illustrated in side elevation.

Figure 2 is a horizontal section on line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a front elevational View of the construction shown in Figure 1; and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on line 4-Ii of Figure 3.

Referring in detail to the drawings, 5 indicates a. gas supply pipe which has been laid substantially horizontally in a ditch whose width is indicated by the lines a after which the ditch is lled with earth. The pipe 5 extends from a gas main and into a residence or building which it services. Just outside the building, a gas collector and vent device is associated with the gas supply pipe 5. This device consists of a hollow barrier 6 of a width slightly greater than the original ditch in which the pipe 5 was laid and adapted to extend entirely across said ditch. The barrier 6 consists of a hollow member having a back wall l, a front wall 8, side walls 9, a bottom wall I0, and a hoodlike top II'. The several walls of the barrier B are imperforate eXc-ept the front wall 8, which is provided with numerous louvered openings II substantially throughout the area thereof, the louvers I2 of which extend upwardly and inwardly within the barrier 6 as shown more clearly in lFigure 4. Also, the front wall 8 is externally covered by a sheet of screened material I3 which extends over the openings II and prevent passage of dirt or other foreign matter through the openings I I into the interior of the barrier. Near the bottom and centrally between the sides of the barrier, the front wall 8 has a relatively large opening I4 through which the gas supply pipe 5 extends. This gas supply pipe 5 also extends through the back wall 'I and such back wall is welded to the pipe 5 as indicated at I5 in Figure 4 so as to provide a gas-proof joint between the pipe 5 and the back Wall 'I for preventing gas from following the pipe 5 further than the wall 'I in the direction of the building serviced by the pipe 5.

In installing the present invention, the barrier t is preferably disposed at a slight upward and outward inclination as shown clearly in Figure 1, and stones or similar loose material I6 are preferably laid in front of the fro-nt wall 8 so that the gas may readily pass to the openings I I for entry into the barrier 6. The hood-like top li' has a central vent pipe Il that extends upwardly above the ground level and terminates in a depending discharge end I8 above the ground. Thus, any gas which has escaped from the pipe 5 and followed it to the Ibarrier 6 will be collected in said barrier and vented to the atmosphere outside the building or residence serviced by said pipe 5, by means of the vent pipe I l. A suitable burner may be applied to the exhaust end of the vent pipe I'I for the purpose of determining whether or not any gas has escaped from the pipe 5 and has been ultimately collected in and is being vented from the barrier 6. This burner may consist of a length of pipe I9 having means to connect one end of the same to the discharge end i8 of the vent pipe I'I, as at 2.0, and being provided at the other end with a gas burner jet 2| as well as -a control valve 22.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the present invention provides a device for effectively collecting any gas which has escaped from a gas supply pipe, before such escaped gas seeps into the building or residence serviced by the gas supply pipe. This gas is collected and vented to the atmosphere outside the building or residence so that it may not seep into the building or residence and be ignited to explode therein.

What I claim as new is:

1. In combination with a horizontal gas supply pipe laid in the ground outside a building, a gas collector and vent including a vertically elongated substantially rectangular hollow barrier through which the gas supply pipe extends, said barrier -being inclined upwardly and outwardly from the building and having an imperio-rate back wall and a perforated front wall, means providing a gas tight joint between the horizontal gas supply pipe and the inclined back wall of said barrier, and a vent pipe leading vertically from the top of said inclined barrier to a point above the ground outside the building.

2. In combination with a horizontal gas supply pipe laid in the ground outside a building, a gas collector and vent including a vertically elongated substantially rectangular hollow barrier through which the gas supply pipe extends, said barrier being inclined upwardly and outwardly from the building and having an imperforate back wall and a perforated front wall, means providing a gas tight joint between the horizontal gas supply pipe and the inclined back wall of said barrier, and a vent pipe leading vertically from the top of said inclined barrier to a point above the ground outside the building, said front wall having numerous louvered openings with the louvers extending upwardly and inwardly within the barrier, and a screen covering said louvered openings to prevent passage of foreign matter into the barrier.

ARCI-IIE L. GREEN. 

